Vikings vs. Lions: Sunday Night Football Picks and Predictions

The biggest game of the NFL regular season closes out Week 18 as the Minnesota Vikings head to Detroit to take on the Lions for the No.1 seed in the NFC and the NFC North title. 

The winner will get home-field advantage throughout the playoffs and a much-needed first-round bye while the loser will fall to the fifth seed and take on the NFC South champions. 

Below, we will take a look at some of the best NFL DFS picks for the Vikings vs. Lions showdown on Sunday Night Football for PrizePicks in NFL Week 18.

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Vikings vs. Lions: Sunday Night Football Picks for PrizePicks

Here are the top PrizePicks picks for the Vikings vs. Lions showdown on Sunday Night Football in Week 18.

• Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs 126.5 Rush+Rec Yards — More
• Vikings TE TJ Hockenson 46.5 Receiving Yards — More
• Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown 18.5 Fantasy Score — More
• SNF Prediction: Lions 34, Vikings 31

👀 Find the Teams in Playoff-Clinching Scenarios in Week 18

Vikings vs. Lions: Where to Watch & Preview

Date: Sunday, January 5, 2025

Time: 8:20 p.m. ET

Location: Ford Field, Detroit, MI

Where to Watch: NBC

These two teams met earlier in the season in a thriller in Minnesota and with so much on the line in this one, expectations are that it will be a thriller once again. Both teams are in the middle of the pack defensively, and the Lions are dealing with tons of injuries on the defensive side of the ball, with six original starters still out on this defense.

Both pass defenses are towards the top in most yards allowed while their passing offenses are both in the top five, meaning there is a good chance we will see another shootout between the teams. 

Each team’s run defense ranks as one of the best in the league, ranking second and third respectively in total rush yards allowed. However, Jahmyr Gibbs was able to torch the Vikings on the ground last time for 116 yards and 2 touchdowns, so he will be a big factor in this game with RB David Montgomery missing the game once again. 

Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs 126.5 Rush+Rec Yards — More

As mentioned above, Gibbs ran for 116 alone against Minnesota last time and also chipped in with 44 receiving yards for a total of 160 yards in Minneapolis. That game had David Montgomery, although he did leave in the first quarter to return later on. 

Without Montgomery, he has soared above 125.5 rushing yards this season with 154 and 163 yards against the Bears and Niners respectively. In five games without Montgomery across the last two seasons, he has missed this number just once, but that was early in his rookie campaign last season. 

Gibbs should be in for another large workload again without Montgomery so look for the Lions to utilize him in many different ways. 

Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson 48.5 Receiving Yards — More 

The Lions are one of the best teams against tight ends this season but over the past month have had their share of struggles thanks in part to their banged-up defense. On Monday night, 49ers TE George Kittle had 8 catches for 112 yards. In the last four games, tight ends against the Lions have totaled 21 catches for 265 yards. 

Detroit has four of their top-five worst performances in terms of yards allowed to tight ends over this last month.

Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson has cleared this projection in both meetings against his former team in which he has played. With a lot of the attention likely directed toward Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison, look for Hockenson to have another solid game against his former team. 

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Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown 18.5 Fantasy Score — More

The Vikings are the best matchup for opposing wide receivers, with Minnesota allowing the most fantasy points to wide receivers this season. Minnesota also gives up the sixth-most points to slot receivers where Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown tends to operate. 

Last time against them, he went 8 catches, 112 yards, and a touchdown, totaling 25.2 fantasy score. Sometimes Detroit also utilizes St. Brown in the run game from time to time so any positive yards will also help towards this 18.5 fantasy score number.

St. Brown was also chosen as a top touchdown scorer pick for Week 18, which would bring him even closer to the 18.5 total.

Game Prediction: Lions 34, Vikings 31

In what should be a game that goes down to the wire, the Lions’ home-field advantage should help them pull this off in the end. Minnesota’s offense will have a big game against a very banged-up Lions defense that clearly has some big holes.

If this game comes down to kickers, the Lions have a significant edge with Jake Bates over Will Reichard on Minnesota. After starting his rookie campaign hot, Reichard has cooled off significantly and is making just over 80 percent of his field goal attempts. Bates on the other hand is making close to 90 percent of his field goal attempts. 

In a game with close margins, the team with the better kicker and home-field should prevail.

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Lock In Your Sunday Night Football Lineups on PrizePicks

This Vikings-Lions game on Sunday Night Football will likely have everything you want. The best receivers, high-scoring potential, two QBs having excellent seasons, division rivals for the title, and number one seed. This is the perfect way to end the NFL regular season on primetime.

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Use PrizePicks to build a Lineup of your NFL picks and be sure to check out The Playbook for more picks.